We joked recently about sleep being overrated when it comes to watching the 2026 World Cup, with a tournament shared by the US, Canada, and Mexico meaning England and Scotland fans will endure kick-off times between 9pm and 5am. But flippant comments from us will only get you so far. To survive a fixture list this brutal you’ll need to find pockets of sleep each day for around six weeks.
It’s been done, of course, a successful life lived in permanent sleep deficit. Donald Trump famously claimed to need only four or five hours each night to function, and he’s doing… actually… bad example. Elon Musk. Six hours is all he needs, apparently, and he’s… well. Look, the point is that it’s possible to survive on less sleep than you might think, if only for a short time. You just need a strategy.
The sensible World Cup sleep strategy: Don’t watch every game
Yes, it’s once every four years and, sure, you would love to watch all 104 games. But unless you can sleep all day like you’re doing nights with Uber, the chances are unlikely. Best option, check the fixtures and, alongside your national team games, pick the big matches and any crucial knockout games to watch only. Going 48-72 hours without sleep is where the hallucinations kick in according to a PubMed study. Are you sure you want to risk that for Congo DR vs. Uzbekistan?
The realistic World Cup sleep strategy: don’t stress it
If you’re determined to watch every game it’s going to need some commitment. Not to mention a few early nights. The key, according to sleep physiologist and the author of Think Less Less, Sleep More, Stephanie Romiszewski, is to avoid major change.
“Maintain a regular wake-up time where possible, get daylight soon after waking and avoid completely flipping your schedule,” says Romiszewski.” If you need one, a short daytime nap can help. Most importantly, don’t treat a few weeks of disrupted sleep like a crisis. Sleep is adaptable. Enjoy the football and accept that your routine may look a little different for a while.”
The beautiful World Cup sleep strategy: Treat it like Ramadan
You’re used to this rhythm. You feel it in your bones, once a year during the Holy Month. The pre-dawn Suhoors, disrupted patterns, and the perfected art of segmented sleep. When you think about it, you’ve been training for this your whole life.
The formula would need to be finessed, depending on the fixtures, but a good template could look something like this: Bed for 9pm with a midnight wake-up call. Then, it’s back beneath the sheets post-games for a further four hours, until the alarm hits 9am.
The post-match World Cup sleep strategy: decompress
The trickiest aspect of watching late-night football is the sheer amount of energy it extracts from you, keeping you awake long after full time. From mulling over victory or defeat in your mind, to scrolling social media, being enraged or enchanted depending on the outcome. This is fine for the odd match, but you’re on a six-week schedule here, and you’ll need to preserve your energy.
“You’re not struggling to sleep because of football. You’re struggling because you’re still buzzing,” explains Romiszewski. “Instead of trying to fall asleep immediately, give yourself 20-30 minutes or longer to decompress. Have a shower, read something light. Don’t go to bed until you actually feel tired, as the stress you put on yourself to force sleep will make it more elusive. And whatever you do, don’t start calculating how many hours of sleep you’ve got left. Worrying about it is often more disruptive than the match itself.”
The overall World Cup sleep strategy: You might not get much – that’s OK
Well, not ok exactly, but manageable. And worth it if it means catching some golden World Cup moments.
“You’ll probably notice some effects [from sleep deprivation] within a few days,” admits Romiszewski. “You might feel less patient, less focused or a bit more tired. That’s very different from causing long-term harm, and humans are remarkably good at adapting to short periods of reduced sleep. Don’t worry, you’ll only make it worse. A World Cup is temporary. You may not feel perfect, but that’s fine. Sometimes staying up late for something you enjoy is a trade-off worth making.”
